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About the Writer

Mia MacDonald is the executive director of Brighter Green, based in New York, which works to raise awareness of and encourage policy action on issues that span the environment, animals, and sustainability. You can follow Brighter Green on Facebook and Twitter.

Could the U.S. dairy processors’ new slogan, “milk life,” make it big in Asia? If dairy multinationals like Nestlé and Danone have their way, the answer might be yes.

As the market for dairy productsin industrialized countries nears saturation, the U.S. dairy industry, along with its counterparts in Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, have begun to look for new consumers in China, Vietnam, Indonesia, and other Asian countries. Read more

What if your national dietary guidelines advised you to cook and enjoy fresh, whole foods, and serve them with friends and family while thinking critically about advertising? Hard to imagine, isn’t it?

Well, that’s exactly what Brazil’s Ministry of Health is recommending with the “food based” dietary guidelines it issued recently. Read more

Can progressive food and climate change policy and programs in the U.S.’ largest city begin with a “whereas”? New York may be about to find out. In 2009, a then-member of New York’s city council agreed to support a “Resolution to Reduce NYC’s Climate ‘Foodprint’” drafted by organizations with varied priorities but a shared rationale: Food and agriculture are significant contributors to global warming. New York City (NYC) could reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and, at the same time, create a healthy, sustainable, and equitable food landscape for its eight million residents. Read more

Pastoralists in Kenya, rice farmers in India, and industrial feedlot operators in the U.S. have all contended with the increased frequency of drought and erratic weather. New agricultural ideas and actions are essential amid rising climate stress, a growing human population, widespread degradation of ecosystems, and rampant food insecurity; nearly one billion people regularly don’t get enough to eat. Read more

Delegates from the world’s governments, and a range of scientists, advisers, and advocates have gathered in Doha, Qatar for the 18th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP18) to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). As the conference enters its final days, they’ll be working to hammer out a deal that paves the way for a new global agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).

Most of negotiators at COP18 are looking at fossil fuels and energy inefficiency as the main culprits in the Earth’s warming and the cause of more frequent droughts, floods, and intensifying and unpredictable weather events (like Superstorm Sandy). Unfortunately, there’s been almost no attention to the negative effects of the industrial food system–and particularly intensive animal agriculture–on the global climate. Read more